She sat stiffly on my lap, nervously glancing around the table at the other guys. Rebel and Casper sat at the other end of the table. They both gave me a curious stare. Rebel raised a brow to which I simply shrugged in return. Whatever. Ripley and I were both adults.
While I played another round of poker, she downed her drink in record time. Unable to relax, she squirmed on my lap. If she kept doing that, I was going to get hard. Hoping to help her chill out, I offered her some weed I’d been carrying.
“Spark that up, beautiful.” Pressing my lips to the shell of her ear, I whispered, “Relax. I won’t bite. Not until I get you alone.”
Ripley took the joint and the lighter I offered. I watched as she placed it between her heart shaped lips. My cock responded as if it would be next.
Keeping her voice low so as not to be overheard, she softly said, “Better be careful. I bite back.”
I grinned. I loved a woman that rose to the challenge I presented her. Someone willing to give back everything she got. Maybe hooking up with Ripley would be worth incurring Codie’s wrath. I was willing to take my chances.
The poker game quickly lost its appeal. After playing a few more hands, I tossed in my cards. “Best of luck boys. I’m out.” Not willing to let Ripley get away, I caught her hand in mine. “Let’s get a refill and find somewhere quiet to sit.”
I poured us both an especially strong drink before seeking out a place to get better acquainted with my fake girlfriend. Spotting an open space in the cut out beneath the staircase, I pulled Ripley over there with me, settling us both into the littlenook. It gave us a great view of the living room as well as those going up and down the stairs.
“Care to take this party to the next level?” Pulling a small baggie from my jeans pocket, I poured two small pills into my palm.
Ripley eyed them curiously. “What are those?”
“Ecstasy. Ever done it before?” Something told me that Ripley wasn’t as squeaky clean as she looked.
“Once or twice.” She accepted the pill I dropped into her hand, popping it in her mouth without a second thought.
I popped my own pill, chasing it down with a strong shot of whiskey. It had been some time since I’d done ecstasy. My drug of choice was blow, along with weed, although I barely considered that a drug these days. There weren’t many drugs I hadn’t tried. I wasn’t a junkie or constantly strung out, although I enjoyed seeing where my mind could take me with the right substance.
“So tell me about Jamie,” I said, breathing in her soft vanilla scent. “How did that happen?”
Ripley leaned back against the wall behind us with a groan. “He’s in one of my classes. I made the mistake of going out with him a few times. Nothing ever came of it, but in his mind we were betrothed or something.”
“How long has he been hassling you?” The thought of that idiot following Ripley around and desperately trying to get with her made me want to snap his neck.
“It’s been a few weeks now I guess. He’s even shown up at my work a few times. I don’t want my boss to get pissed off, so I haven’t spit in his food or anything yet.” She laughed, that musical sound that rubbed my senses the right way.
“I’d be doing a lot worse than that,” I muttered, sipping from my drink.
I hated that she had to see him in class every day on campus. Would our little show tonight be enough to keep him at bay? I may have to keep an eye on him.
“I’m so done with dating,” she continued. “I’m really not cut out for this bullshit. Growing old alone with six cats sounds really fucking good right now.”
Knowing that she wasn’t looking for anything serious made her even more appealing. I nodded my agreement. “Sounds good to me. I like cats.”
From where we sat we were able to see Rebel enter the living room, taking a seat next to Storm on the couch. Luna disappeared with Casper, most likely to go bang their brains out. People were making out all around the room. A small group was playing Spin the Bottle in one corner. Did people really play Spin the Bottle these days? Weird.
Ripley and I sat in our little nook, watching the party go on around us while not really being part of it. We talked about school and life on campus. Passing the time until the ecstasy we’d dropped began to take hold. Once I felt that euphoric relaxation set in, I knew the night was about to get good.
I lit up another joint, leaning against the wall next to her. “That Jamie idiot is still here. He’s over there with those people playing beer pong. If you need me to keep being your fake boyfriend on campus next week, I’m cool with that. Unless you think you can take it from here on your own.”
Ripley stared across the room at Jamie, her eyes bloodshot and glassy. Her upper lip curled in revulsion. “I might have to take you up on that. If you don’t mind playing the part.”
Struck with the sudden urge to touch her, I angled myself to face her, grasping her chin. Drawing her gaze to mine. “I don’t mind at all. Although my services may come at a price.”
Her gaze dropped to my lips. I knew she was thinking about our kiss earlier. Especially when she murmured, “And what might that be?”
Needing to taste her again, I seized her mouth in a fiery kiss. Stoking the simmering heat between us into a blaze. Ripley welcomed it when I slipped my tongue against hers. Sweeping her mouth with a dramatic flourish. Not even the thump and bang of someone falling down the stairs above us broke us apart.
When she pushed her hand into my hair and leaned in to kiss my neck, I chuckled softly. “I’m pretty sure we can work something out.”
CHAPTER THREE
